COALESCE
BY LIAM LASTING
01
APIARY
02
AVIAN KNOLL
03
INTERFACE
04
SIPHONOPHORE
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BEYOND ARCHITECTURE
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SYNCHRONOUS
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INSTITUTIONAL TRANSPARENCY
GILDED DEPENDENCIES PERCEPTIONS OF NATURE CO-LIVING LEARNING CENTER SYMBIOTIC MARKETPLACE SCULPTURAL WORKS ADAPTIVE FOLLY
REDEFINING THE ARCHIVE
APIARY 01
APIARY
GILDED DEPENDENCIES Through the integration of bees and humans into this space of cohabitation, Apiary seeks to redefine our relationship with this declining species that we so desperately rely on. With the reintroduction of bees to the railpark in Callowhill, the existing infrastructure is reclaimed, shifting our perception of what a typical facade and wall poché could be and what other life it might intentionally support. With the use of automated learning, robotic arms and microdrones collaborate with and monitor the bees as they develop a symbiotic relationship with one another. This interaction provides a benefit to the bees through colony stabilization while also providing humans with direct and indirect services. The buildings that we develop can do more than just supporting humans and in many cases, they already do so without our knowing.
Located within Philadelphia, Callowhill was a once heavily industrial area, where remnants of this polluted infrastructure still exists today. Within the remaining infrastructure, an inaccessible rail line is now producing “life” as the overgrowth has consumed it’s surface. As this rail line elevates itself off of the street, Apiary perches itself within a typically unbuildable plot of land through a tailored infill design logic.
In Collaboration with Maria Sofia Garcia Instructed by Robert Stuart Smith Nominated for Publishing in Pressing Matters XI in 2023
APIARY 01
Aerial Perspective | Site Context in Relation to Apiary
Detail Elevation | Robotic Arm in Motion & Open Air Hives vs Infill Hives
APIARY
01
INTERSPECIES COHABITATION As we once used the natural landscape to develop our own habitats, nature is now using our constructed landscapes to reclaim a foothold within our urban space. With a vision of preserving this natural foothold within our highly prescribed synthetic environment, a dance might again occur between plants and pollinators. With bee pollination enabling the commercial growth of at least 90% of the crops that are grown within North America, this annually contributes more than 24 billion dollars to the United States economy but requires 1.4 million active hives to support this agricultural stability. With bees having such an expansive economic, agricultural, and ecological impact, they are absolutely essential in the preservation of our food production and livelihood. During the winter, bees will naturally form a cluster within their respective hives and rapidly vibrate their bodies to produce heat, ensuring colony survival. Specialized heater bees have the ability to heat up a hive’s internal volume to an average of 81°F with a peripheral hive temperature of 48°F. This is essential in the survival of the hive, but this heat can also be used to provide an active thermal membrane for the interior human spaces. As the bees infill the poché, the reading of the building’s facade begins to shift and it provides this naturally-active insulation for the wall assembly.
APIARY 01
04 03
02
01
01 02 03 04
30°F
40°F
50°F
60°F
70°F
80°F
Wall Panel Assembly | Wall Poché with Bee Habitation & Its Active Thermal Insulation Role
Interior Visitor Experience | Illuminated Hives & Bee Silhouettes
Fiberglass Reinforced Polymer Hive Formation Hive Formation Thermal Mapping Polycarbonate Paneling
90°F
100°F
APIARY 01
Longitudinal Sectional Elevation A | Formal Integration of Housing and Educational Space
AVIAN KNOLL
PERCEPTIONS OF NATURE Central Park is not natural. It did not occur spontaneously or organically, rather, it was planned and deliberately constructed as a place of respite in Manhattan. This escape to “nature” may allow city dwellers to be connected to their environment, but it is important to recognize that the environment in question is also one that has been deliberately curated. Despite what appears as a stark juxtaposition between the built and natural environment, both the city and the park are constructed. In a space where rock formations are deliberately placed and lakes and reservoirs are designed and excavated, it is not a huge leap to create an entirely new synthetic nature, a new biome, within this tapestry. The synthetic nature of the avian knoll recognizes the reality of the nature of Central Park, while also encouraging animal gathering, habitation, and interaction. In other words, it creates a new nature in order to speed up naturally occurring phenomenon, it constructs something not exclusively for the human gaze, but for the well being of the fauna and flora that have not often received attention in New York City.
In Collaboration with Yasmine McBride Instructed by Simon Kim Nominated for Publishing in Pressing Matters X in 2022
AVIAN KNOLL
02
Structural System & Analysis | Vertical Displacement -3.3565”
-2.3658”
-1.375”
-0.3843”
0.60642”
Av i a n K n o l
l
AVIAN KNOLL
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AVIAN KNOLL
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AVIAN KNOLL
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02
01
Bent Metal Copper Panel Z Clip (typ) Aluminum Handrail Waterproofing Poured in Place Concrete
0
1”
Callout 01 | Copper Metal Panel & Handrail Detail
Shou Sugi Ban Timber Insulation Waterproofing Sheathing Wood Joists Insulation Dye Sublimated Copper Panel Steel Angle Wood Shim Exposed Wood Ceiling Joist Structural Timber Beam Sealant w/ Backer Rod Glass
Stone Paver Paver Pedestal Steel Angle Floor Grill Wood Interior Floor Fin Tube Convector
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1
Callout 02 | Exterior Glass Facade & Timber Structure Detail
2”
AVIAN KNOLL
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Entry Stair | Main Theater Circulation
Artificial Cave | Theater & Cave Entryway
AVIAN KNOLL
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AVIAN KNOLL
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INTE R FAC E 03
INTERFACE
CO-LIVING LEARNING CENTER Red Hook, Brooklyn is home to a diverse group of people from various racial and economic backgrounds. The diversity in Red Hook comes from the contrast between the artist community that resides on the west side of the neighborhood and the government-funded, low-income housing on the east side. Over 65% of Redhook’s community consists of low-income residents and 21% of these residents have a disability. When doing this initial research, these figures and the prominence of this community within Red Hook drastically stood out and made me question what their neighborhood might not be offering them currently. After further investigation it was discovered that adequate public educational resources are very few and far between in the area. Through an interface with the Red Hook Grain Terminal, there is an opportunity to provide affordable accessible housing in tandem with educational resources. The center looks at supporting those that currently reside in the neighborhood through providing this underserved community with the tools that they need.
Instructed by Ben Krone As Published in Pressing Matters X in 2022
INTE R FAC E 03
INTE R FAC E 03
Longitudinal Sectional Elevation A | Formal Integration of Housing and Educational Space
INTE R FAC E
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Living Units Living Units Levels 03-07
Levels 03 - 07
Living Units
Levels 03 - 07
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003 veell LLee v9 ’6’6” ” 39
3
l0 ve L e ’6 ” 39
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Accessible Education Spaces Accessible Education Spaces Levels 01-02 Levels 01 - 02
2 002 veell LLee v ’6’6” ” 7 22 7 011 veell 0 LLee v ’6’6” ” 11 55
Accessible Education Spaces Levels 01 - 02
l0 ve L e ’6 ” 27
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l0 ve L e ’6 ” 15
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Literar y Collection
Two Bedroom Apar tment
One Bedroom Apar tment
Two Bedroom Apartment
y Collection LiteraryLiterar Collection
Two Bedroom Apar tment
Semi-Private Circulation
Child Learning Center
Technology Resource Center
Child Learning Child Learning Center Center
Public Circulation
Technology Resource Technology Resource Center Center
Studio Apar tment
Public Public Circulation Circulation
Studio Studio Apar tment Apartment
Braille, Audio, & Visual Collection
Private Circulation
Semi-Private Circulation
Braille, Audio, & Visual Braille, Audio, & Visual Collection Collection
One Bedroom Apartment
One Bedroom Apar tment
Living Unit Render | Single Living Unit Spacial Integration
Ground Level Entry & Central Courtyard Render | Integration of Project to Site with Environmental Considerations
INTE R FAC E 03
Children’s Educational Space Render | Visualizing Various Children’s Learning Environments
Educational Space Render | Visualizing Accessibility to Educational Material
SIPHONOPHORE
SYMBIOTIC MARKETPLACE The Callowhill community is a collage of programs, services, and people. All of which are stitched into the identity of this neighborhood and the rich history behind it. The dam created by the Vine Street Expressway has isolated Callowhill from Center City, rendering it as a desert. In consequence, essentials such as food and housing within the area have been severely neglected as many lots are either languished or converted into parking lots. The lack of these essentials has produced a void that the morphology of this market can fulfill in the form of an oasis to this desert. Although markets are spaces that provide for the exchange of goods and currencies between parties, they also provoke an infrastructural network, one that is embedded with identity, that can provide additional services and values to the surrounding community. This stitching of housing for the homeless, building workshops, and urban farms into the market produces a Siphonophoric relationship, where each program is designated a specific function to support the operations and growth of this overall being.
Instructed by Annette Fierro As Published in Pressing Matters IX in 2021
SIPH O N OPH OR E
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This site analysis collage that was produced shows this delicate coexistence and interactions between the local industry, grocers, and the homeless population that resides within the area. The collage provides a formal and organizational inspiration to develop a cascading landscape of petal-like pods. Each structure sprouts out of a central courtyard and the petals bloom to develop these volumes. Through the manipulation of the paneling material; opaque, transparent, or void, the structure changes programmatically in reaction to these conditions. It is essential that each courtyard space produces this intermixing of programs so the cross interactions can disperse across the site. The symbiosis which is produced through the coordination of these programs creates more than just a single entity, but a dynamic community. This Siphonophoric strategy is used to combat the three prominent issues that consume much of Callowhill’s identity; industry, homelessness, and foodlessness, as well as connect the viaduct portion of the railpark to its community. This is a space meant to serve the entirety of the Callowhill community, regardless of income level in the hopes of making this marketplace more than just a space for economic growth, but one that brings people together and provides necessities to those that are in grave need of them. This coalition between a market, food production spaces, and housing units for the homeless will support everyone within Callowhill.
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SIPH O N OPH OR E
DESIGNING COLLAGE
SIPH O N OPH OR E
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SIPH O N OPH OR E
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Floor Plan Level 02 | Relationship to Initial Callowhill Site Analysis Collage
Glulam Beam 2x4 Wooden Member Lag Bolt
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Glulam Beam Connection to 2x4
Glulam Beam Galvanized Hex Nut Concealed Steel Bracket Exposed Steel Bracket Fixed Connection Hinged Connection 2x8 Wooden Member Galvanized Hex Bolt
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Glulam Beam Connection to 2x8
1/8” Aluminum Panel Panel Clip Fastener Lag Bolt 2x8 Wooden Member Rigid Insulation Backer Rod Sealant Thermal Separator 3/16” Plywood Sheathing Vapor Barrier
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Panel Connection to 2x8
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2x4 Wooden Member 4x12 Curved Glulam Beam Perforated Metal Paneling System Polycarbonate Paneling System 2x8 Bottom Plate 2x8 Wooden Member
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SIPH O N OPH OR E
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Longitudinal Section A | Marketplace Relationship to Street Level and Elevated Rail Park
Perspective Render | Public Space Versus Private Space Differentiation
SIPH O N OPH OR E
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Perspective Render | Project Overlook
B EYOND ARCH ITECTUR E
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BEYOND ARCHITECTURE SCULPTURAL WORKS
Beyond architecture, I immerse myself in sculptural arts. Through the mediums of wire, ceramics, and woodworking. They are all mediums that instill craftsmanship and can easily convey ideas of form and spatial relationships. As a way of quickly getting ideas out, they are embedded in my process for formally designing and are often rooted in thinking through problems that are in need of a solution. They are not directly converted into architectural works but the ideas that they develop and the spatial organization they produce is something that strongly carries into my architectural designs. Different techniques and themes are carried throughout these different vessels but all of these shown works are executed through the medium of clay. Clay has a level of plasticity to it that can be worked in many different ways while still taking gravity and the vessels structural qualities into consideration. When designing these pieces, gravity is always used to its advantage and is the greatest tool that I have at my disposal. I believe gravity is a gift when developing strong architecture as well.
B EYOND ARCH ITECTUR E
05
Olive Branch | Ceramic + Glaze Pencil
Nautilus | Ceramic
Olive Branch | Ceramic + Glaze Pencil
Elan Vital | Ceramic
Free | Ceramic
SYNCHRONOUS ADAPTIVE FOLLY
Through the 3D image mapping of a boot, a high resolution of scanned data was not reached. The detail of the stitching that runs along the side of the boot was lost in the translation between the physical and the digital. Therefore, with the manual recreation of this missing component, a greater analysis of texture, form, and composition could be achieved. This analysis creates a sinew. One that not only holds the faces of a boot together but attempts to merge the physical with the digital to create an interactive bridge between the form of people, nature, and computational design. The climbing folly developed through this technique produces a series of structural components that may be adapted to support the concrete panels that are tact onto it. These panels are meant to be interchanged and adjusted so they can provide a variety of climbing experiences. With this system, not only can the panels be used as the climbing mechanism, but the structural system can be as well. This composition hopes to seamlessly sew these interactions together as a community destination for athletes and climbing enthusiasts of all skill levels, linking them to the ever developing city of Philadelphia.
Instructed by Danielle Willems & Ezio Blasetti
SYNCHR ONOUS
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Perspective Render | Climbing Folly Versatility
Elevational Render | Structural System to Paneling Relationship
SYNCHR ONOUS
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INSTITUTIONAL TRANSPARENCY
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INSTITUTIONAL TRANSPARENCY REDEFINING THE ARCHIVE
A spectacle may be defined in a variety of ways, as the term has been used throughout history to instill an idea and provoke change. The western institution of the museum vividly spectasises itself as a curated collection of rare antiquities that are researched by staff and on display for the public’s enjoyment and education. This perception that the institution radiates is one rooted in the preservation of these objects to study them and educate the world. Although this may be the spectacle that the museum presents, its motive is out of imperialistic greed and the fetishism of these objects which they acquire as a means to satisfy their kleptomaniac tendencies to move up in the rankings of trophy collecting. This system is the traditional power structure that museum’s operate under but this can be changed. The Penn Museum has put in place a few programs in an attempt to right the wrongs of the past. This proposal attempts to critic the classic iconicism that the museum presents through its program, function, and appearance. It tears down existing barriers, providing equity between staff, public, and artifacts that reside within the museum. The proposal breaks down this spectacle by creating an environment that ultimately connects the community to the museum.
Instructed by Eduardo Rega Exhibited in the Penn Museum in 2020 As Published in Pressing Matters IX in 2021
INSTITUTIONAL TRANSPARENCY
07
Project Render | Extension Integration into Existing Museum
Interior Rendering | Archive to Courtyard Experience
MAKING CONNECTIONS The courtyard’s external facades and the internal structure of the museum instill an idea of western classicism which this intervention of flowing pathways subdues. Through the introduction of this structure, the hierarchy between served and servant spaces within the museum and the boundary between public and private becomes nearly nonexistent. Giving visitors access to the entirety of the museum’s stored collection enabling the public to determine their viewing experience. Additionally a new organization strategy for the storage of these artifacts will be put into effect. The origins and histories of these objects are important to us and should be exposed to the public but that shouldn’t be done through gallery curation and as a classification principle. Each archival space will be maintained according to their preservation needs, prioritizing the museums primal function of maintaining these items.
Therefore, each space is activated through public the participation and interaction they experience with the archived artifacts. These objects all have valuable memories and stories to tell and it’s the museum’s obligation to convey them to the public through workshops and non hierarchical viewing. With the museum telling us what we should and shouldn’t view does an injustice to these artifacts and their cultural origins.
INSTITUTIONAL TRANSPARENCY
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Perspective Section East | Existing to Addition Relationship
Perspective Section North | Existing to Addition Relationship
INSTITUTIONAL TRANSPARENCY
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Chunk Model | Artifact Storage Organization
Interior Rendering | Archive to Courtyard Experience
Chunk Model | Artifact Storage Organization
COALESCE